Portal:Florida


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Map of the United States with Florida highlighted

Florida (/ˈflɒrɪdə/ FLORR-ih-də; Spanish: [floˈɾiða] ) is a state in the Southeastern and South Atlantic regions of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, the Straits of Florida to the south, and The Bahamas to the southeast. About two-thirds of Florida occupies a peninsula between the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. It has the longest coastline in the contiguous United States, spanning approximately 1,350 miles (2,170 km), not including its many barrier islands. It is the only state that borders both the Gulf of Mexico and the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of over 23 million, it is the third-most populous state in the United States and ranks seventh in population density as of 2020. Florida spans 65,758 square miles (170,310 km2), ranking 22nd in area among the states. The Miami metropolitan area, anchored by the cities of Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and West Palm Beach, is the state's largest metropolitan area, with a population of 6.138 million; the most populous city is Jacksonville. Florida's other major population centers include Tampa Bay, Orlando, Cape Coral, and the state capital of Tallahassee.

Various Native American groups have inhabited Florida for at least 14,000 years. In 1513, Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León became the first documented European to make landfall in the region and named it La Florida (Spanish for "land of flowers"; [la floˈɾiða]), giving the territory its present name. Spain subsequently incorporated Florida into the Spanish Empire in the early 16th century. In 1565, it founded St. Augustine, the oldest continuously inhabited European-established settlement in the continental United States. The region was frequently coveted and attacked by Great Britain throughout the 18th century. Britain briefly gained control of Florida in 1763, but Spain recovered it in 1783 following the British defeat in the American Revolutionary War. Florida remained under Spanish rule until it was ceded to the United States in 1821, in exchange for U.S. recognition of Spanish sovereignty in Texas and the resolution of the border dispute along the Sabine River. Florida was admitted as the 27th state on March 3, 1845, and was the principal location of the Seminole Wars (1816–1858), the longest and most extensive of the American Indian Wars. The state seceded from the Union on January 10, 1861, becoming one of the seven original Confederate States, and was readmitted to the Union after the Civil War on June 25, 1868.

Since the mid-20th century, Florida has experienced rapid demographic and economic growth. Its economy, with a gross state product (GSP) of $1.647 trillion, is the fourth largest of any U.S. state and the fifteenth-largest in the world; the main sectors are tourism, hospitality, agriculture, real estate, and transportation. Florida is world-renowned for its beach resorts, amusement parks, warm and sunny climate, and nautical recreation; attractions such as Walt Disney World, the Kennedy Space Center, and Miami Beach draw tens of millions of visitors annually. Florida is a popular destination for retirees, seasonal vacationers, and both domestic and international migrants. The state's close proximity to the ocean has shaped its culture, identity, and daily life; its colonial history and successive waves of migration are reflected in African, European, Indigenous, Latino, and Asian influences. Florida has attracted or inspired some of the most prominent American writers, including Ernest Hemingway, Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, and Tennessee Williams, and continues to attract celebrities and athletes, especially in golf, tennis, auto racing, and water sports. Florida has been known for being a battleground state in American presidential elections, although it has turned increasingly Republican in recent years. (Full article...)

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East Boca Raton skyline

Boca Raton (/ˌbkə rəˈtn/ BOH-kə rə-TOHN; Spanish: Boca Ratón [ˈboka raˈton]) is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The population was 97,422 in the 2020 census, and it ranked as the 23rd-largest city in Florida in 2022. Many people with a Boca Raton postal address live outside of municipal boundaries, such as in West Boca Raton. As a business center, the city also experiences significant daytime population increases. Boca Raton is 45 miles (72 km) north of Miami and is a principal city of the Miami metropolitan area.

It was first incorporated on August 2, 1924, as "Bocaratone", and then incorporated as "Boca Raton" on May 26, 1925. While the area had been inhabited by the Glades culture, as well as Spanish and later British colonial empires prior to its annexation by the United States, the city's present form was developed predominantly by American architect Addison Mizner starting in the 1920s. Mizner contributed to many buildings in the area having Mediterranean Revival or Spanish Colonial Revival architecture. Boca Raton also became a key city in the development of the early computer industry. The city is the birthplace of IBM's first personal computer and various other technologies created by the company. (Full article...)

Did you know...

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General images -

The following are images from various Florida-related articles on Wikipedia.

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Current events

February 4, 2026 – Attempted assassination of Donald Trump in Florida
Ryan Wesley Routh, the man who attempted to assassinate United States president Donald Trump while he was golfing at his club in West Palm Beach, Florida, in 2024, is sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. (The New York Times)
November 26, 2025 – South Africa–United States relations, 2026 G20 Doral summit, South African farm attacks
U.S. president Donald Trump announces that South Africa will not be invited to the 2026 G20 summit in Doral, Florida, and that U.S. payments and subsidies to the country will cease, citing South Africa's refusal to transfer G20 hosting responsibilities to a U.S. embassy representative at the 2025 Johannesburg summit and criticizing its treatment of Afrikaners, among other reasons. (AP via Arab News)

WikiProjects

WikiProjects puzzle
WikiProjects puzzle
Main project
  • WikiProject Florida
Sub-projects
  • Jacksonville
  • Manatee-Sarasota History
  • Miami
  • Navarre
  • Tampa Bay
  • Florida International University
  • Florida State University
  • State University System of Florida
  • University of Central Florida
  • University of Florida
  • U.S. Roads/Florida

Selected panorama -

The Seven Mile Bridge, as seen from the Ohio Keys
The Seven Mile Bridge, as seen from the Ohio Keys

The Seven Mile Bridge, in the Florida Keys, runs over a channel between the Gulf of Mexico and the Florida Strait, connecting Knight's Key (the location of the city of Marathon, Florida) in the Middle Keys to Little Duck Key in the Lower Keys. Among the longest bridges in existence when it was built, it is one of the many bridges on US 1 in the Keys, where the road is called the Overseas Highway.

Topics

Quality content

1910 Cuba hurricane1928 Okeechobee hurricane2006 Gator Bowl2012 Budweiser ShootoutAmerican white ibisAndrew SleddBiscayne National ParkDerek JeterDraining and development of the EvergladesErnest HemingwayEverglades National ParkFalcon's FuryGeography and ecology of the EvergladesGeorge Floyd (American football)Gregor MacGregorGuy BradleyHogwarts Express (Universal Orlando Resort)Hurricane AndrewHurricane DennisIndigenous people of the Everglades regionIron GwaziJohn F. BoltMarjory Stoneman DouglasRosewood massacreSci-Fi Dine-In Theater RestaurantSheiKraSpace Shuttle Challenger disasterSt. Johns RiverTNA Turning Point (2008)USS Massachusetts (BB-2)Walt Disney World Railroad

List of Daytona 500 winnersList of Florida hurricanesList of Florida hurricanes (1900–1949)List of Florida hurricanes (1950–1974)List of Florida hurricanes (1975–1999)List of Florida hurricanes (pre-1900)List of Tampa Bay Rays seasonsList of University of Central Florida alumniList of birds of FloridaList of counties in FloridaList of governors of FloridaList of invasive species in the EvergladesList of mammals of FloridaList of municipalities in FloridaSnow in FloridaUnited States presidential elections in Florida

Good articles

1898 Georgia hurricane1928 Florida Gators football team1976 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season1979 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season1986 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season1987 Gulf Coast tropical storm1987 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season1989 Florida's 18th congressional district special election1989 South Florida television affiliation switch1998 Pepsi 4002003 Budweiser Shootout2005 TNA Super X Cup Tournament2006 Daytona 5002006 Ford 4002008 TNA World X Cup Tournament2009 Budweiser Shootout2009 Ford 4002010 Cafés do Brasil Indy 3002010 Daytona 5002010 Ford 4002011 Budweiser Shootout2011 Daytona 5002011 Gatorade Duels2012 Daytona 5002012 Gatorade Duels2016 24 Hours of Daytona2017 24 Hours of Daytona2018 24 Hours of Daytona2021 College Football Playoff National Championship2022 Gasparilla BowlAlbert A. MurphreeAndy HansenApalachee massacreApollo 1Ashlyn HarrisBattle of Flint RiverBob TurleyBomisBound for Glory (2005)Brad Miller (baseball)Buccaneers–Packers rivalryBurger KingBurger King franchisesBurger King legal issuesCarlos (Calusa)Caroline Street (Key West)Catie BallChad MottolaCheetah HuntChicago Options Associates

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Did you know? articles

West Palm Beach Fishing Club (2026-01-22)Scarlett Spears (2026-01-13)Derek Han (2026-01-05)MLS Cup 2025 (2025-12-27)WKMG-TV (2025-12-12)Splash (otter) (2025-11-28)Lewis House (Tallahassee, Florida) (2025-11-10)John Adams Cameron (2025-11-01)Bop House (2025-10-29)Weezer Cruise (2025-10-17)WTWC-TV (2025-09-09)Luisa Moreno (2025-08-10)Arielle Prepetit (2025-08-05)Chelsea Wolfe (BMX cyclist) (2025-07-23)Jeff Baena (2025-06-29)Samantha Nye (2025-06-26)WRBW (2025-06-24)Leander Wiegand (2025-06-24)Jeremy Crawshaw (2025-06-18)Arrest of Marcy Rheintgen (2025-05-24)WTLV (2025-05-05)Sophie Rain (2025-04-28)2024 Tallahassee tornadoes (2025-03-20)WTVX (2025-02-16)La Querida (mansion) (2025-02-12)2025 Orange Bowl (2025-02-05)Florida State University academic-athletic scandal (2025-01-19)WZAZ (2024-12-31)WOGX (2024-11-14)Misinformation about the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season (2024-11-07)Jumbo's (2024-10-28)MyRadar (2024-10-25)J. D. Arteaga (2024-07-19)Florida Hospital Oceanside (2024-07-02)WOTF-TV (2024-06-29)Caitlyn Wurzburger (2024-06-15)WJHP-TV (2024-06-07)WEDU (2024-05-09)CSL Plasma (2024-04-12)Liberty Christian Preparatory School (2024-04-05)Tim Burke (journalist) (2024-03-11)Gasparilla Pirate Festival (2024-03-02)Buccaneers–Packers rivalry (2023-12-17)Skytrain (Miami International Airport) (2023-12-05)Anthony Bennett (gridiron football) (2023-12-05)WPBF (2023-12-01)If I Survive You (2023-10-26)Ruby Diamond (2023-09-22)1989 South Florida television affiliation switch (2023-09-22)Desmond Watson (2023-08-20)

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Florida
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Communications in Florida
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Health in Florida
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Military in Florida
Native American tribes in Florida
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Science and technology in Florida
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Associated Wikimedia

The following Wikimedia Foundation sister projects provide more on this subject:

Things you can do

  • Tag all talk pages of Florida articles and categories with {{WPFlorida|class=|importance=}}. (The rater user script can be used to help tag articles.)
  • Find images for articles (see Category:Wikipedia requested photographs in Florida)
  • Cleanup requests: clean-up listing for Floridathe tool's wiki page
  • Expand any existing stub
  • Add county templates ({{Hamilton County, Florida}}, {{Jackson County, Florida}}, etc.) to appropriate cities.
  • Add appropriate short descriptions to Florida-related articles.

Sources

  1. ^ "Cuba's most famous food isn't even from Cuba — or Miami". Matador Network.
  2. ^ "Viva La Cuban Sandwich!". Farmers’ Almanac. March 20, 2015.
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